Namibian regional councillor Adolf Hitler Uunona says he is officially removing “Hitler” from his name after securing re-election to a fifth term, ending decades of awkward questions and unwanted associations with the Nazi dictator.
The 59-year-old Swapo politician, who has represented Ompundja in the Oshana region since 2004, told local media he now wishes to be known simply as Adolf Uunona, saying the name has long caused confusion, with some assuming he shared extremist views.
He emphasised that his politics stem from Namibia’s liberation struggle, not Nazi ideology, and explained that his father chose the name without understanding its global infamy. Uunona said he only realised as he grew older that the name belonged to the architect of the Holocaust and has spent much of his public life distancing himself from any association.
Despite international fascination with his name, he remains widely popular at home, consistently winning large majorities thanks to his grassroots work on roads, basic services and rural development.
He believes his father’s choice was influenced by Namibia’s German colonial legacy, where Germanic names remain common. For his constituents, it appears his community-focused record matters far more than a name he’s now determined to leave behind.
Ah yes Hitlers extremist views like Christianity, respect for animals, national pride and service, also respect for the family unit and many other things, it’s a damn good thing that they stopped him when they did